%0 Journal Article
%T Microenvironment-Modulating Adsorption Enables Highly Efficient Lithium Extraction under Natural pH Conditions.
%A Han Y
%A Ma J
%A Liu D
%A Yang Y
%A Zhang T
%A Wang M
%A Liang D
%A Wen L
%A Ma J
%A Wang W
%J ACS Nano
%V 18
%N 12
%D 2024 Mar 26
%M 38470249
%F 18.027
%R 10.1021/acsnano.3c12978
%X Ion-sieve adsorbents are effective materials in practical applications for extracting liquid lithium. However, it is greatly suppressed in adsorption capacity and selectivity (Li/Mg) under natural near-neutral conditions of seawater or salt lakes, due to the interference of in situ released H+ and Mg2+ impurity. This paper proposes an adsorbent with a microenvironment-modulating function as a solution. The introduction of quaternary ammonium groups into the carrier accelerates the migration of H+, while preventing the diffusion of Mg2+ by electrostatic repulsion. Besides, it can also prestore OH-, effectively consuming the generated hydrogen ions in situ. Based on the rational design, the alkali consumption of the microenvironment-modulating strategy is dramatically reduced to 1/144 of the traditional alkali-adding method. Additionally, adsorption performance is significantly promoted under natural pH conditions, with a maximum 33 times higher separation factor (selectivity) and 4 times higher adsorption capacity than commercial ion-sieve adsorbents. This development indicates the feasibility of using microenvironment modulation for effective lithium extraction and inspires the development of next-generation high-performance adsorbents.